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McLaren along with Formula One would benefit from anything decisive during this title fight between Norris & Piastri being decided through on-track action and without reference to the pit wall with the championship finale kicks off at the COTA on Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath prompts internal strain

After the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful post-race analyses concluded, McLaren is aiming for a reset. Norris was likely more than aware about the historical parallels of his riposte to his aggrieved teammate at the last grand prix weekend. In a fiercely contested title fight against Piastri, that Norris invoked one of Ayrton Senna’s most famous sentiments did not go unnoticed but the incident which triggered his statement was of an entirely different nature from incidents characterizing the Brazilian’s iconic battles.

“Should you criticize me for just going on the inside of a big gap then you don't belong in F1,” stated Norris regarding his first-lap move to pass which resulted in the cars colliding.

The remark seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “If you no longer go an available gap that exists you are no longer a true racer” defence he provided to Sir Jackie Stewart following his collision with the French champion in Japan back in 1990, ensuring he took the championship.

Parallel mindset yet distinct situations

Although the attitude remains comparable, the phrasing is where the similarities end. The late champion confessed he had no intent to allow Prost beat him at turn one whereas Norris attempted to make his pass cleanly in Singapore. In fact, it was a perfectly valid effort which received no penalty despite the minor contact he had with his McLaren teammate as he went through. This incident stemmed from him touching the Red Bull of Max Verstappen in front of him.

Piastri reacted furiously and, notably, immediately declared that Norris's position gain seemed unjust; suggesting that their collision was verboten under McLaren’s rules of engagement and Norris should be instructed to return the position he gained. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that during disputes between them, both will promptly appeal to the team to intervene on his behalf.

Squad management and impartiality being examined

This comes naturally of McLaren’s laudable efforts to let their drivers race one another and strive to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from creating complex dilemmas in setting precedents over what constitutes just or unjust – which, under these auspices, now covers misfortune, strategy and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there is the question of perception.

Most crucially for the championship, with six meetings remaining, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, each racer's view exists as fair and when their perspectives might split from the team's stance. Which is when the amicable relationship between the two may – finally – become a little bit more the iconic rivalry.

“It’s going to come a point where a few points will matter,” said Mercedes team principal Wolff after Singapore. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I guess aggression will increase further. That’s when it starts to get interesting.”

Audience expectations and title consequences

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will probably be welcomed in the form of a track duel instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration of circumstances. Especially since for F1 the other impression from these events is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren is taking appropriate choices for their interests and it has paid off. They clinched their tenth team championship in Singapore (though a great achievement overshadowed by the fuss prompted by their drivers' clash) and in Andrea Stella as team principal they have an ethical and principled leader who genuinely wants to do the right thing.

Sporting integrity against team management

Yet having drivers in a championship fight appealing to the team for resolutions is unedifying. Their competition ought to be determined through racing. Chance and fate will have roles, yet preferable to allow them just battle freely and see how fortune falls, rather than the sense that every disputed moment will be analyzed intensely by the squad to determine if intervention is needed and subsequently resolved afterwards behind closed doors.

The examination will intensify and each time it happens it is in danger of potentially making a difference that could be critical. Already, after the team made for position swaps at Monza due to Norris experiencing a slow pit stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by with the strategy call at Hungary, where Norris won, the spectre of a fear of favouritism also emerges.

Team perspective and future challenges

No one wants to witness a championship constantly disputed because it may be considered that the efforts to be fair were unequal. When asked if he felt the team had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri responded that they did, but noted that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“We've had several challenging moments and we discussed a number of things,” he stated post-race. “However finally it’s a learning process with the whole team.”

Six meetings remain. The team has minimal room for error to do their cramming, thus perhaps wiser now to simply close the books and step back from the conflict.